The Ruined Boys by Roy Fuller

4.9

Part I

(Gerald Bracher, a boy of fourteen, is a new pupil at the private boarding-school and does not yet know all its rules.

Every Sunday after dinner, the boys can write letters home. They write them in the classroom where there is a teacher on duty. When a letter is written, the boy must put it into an envelope and give it to the teacher to read.)

It was the first Sunday evening of the Spring term. After dinner the boys walked by the sea. Mr. Chaplin, one of the teachers, was with them, he was on duty that evening. Then they went back to the school to write their letters home.

Mr. Chaplin was reading the last of the boys’ letters.

“Snape,” he called. A small boy stood up. “What have you written in your letter? ‘I swallowed a marble.’”

All the boys in the class laughed.

“But I did, sir,” said Snape.

“Did what?” asked Mr. Chaplin.

“Swallowed a marble. On Friday.”

Again the boys laughed.

“Hm,” said Mr. Chaplin. “Well, you can’t write about it in a letter home. Don’t you see that, Snape? You must write the letter again later.” Mr. Chaplin put the letter back on his table.

“Well, boys, you can go out now.”

For some time the boys ran and played in the playground and then they went back to the classroom. They took books to read from the bookcase. Gerald also took a book and sat down at his desk to read. At that moment a boy came into the room. He came up to Mr. Chaplin and said something to him.

“Bracher,” said Mr. Chaplin, “you must go and see the Headmaster in his office.”

All the boys looked up from their books. Bracher left the classroom. He did not know where the Headmaster’s office was and had to ask a boy who was in the corridor.

He came to a door at the end of the corridor and knocked and the Headmaster’s voice said:

“Come in.”

Bracher opened the door and came in.

“Sit down, Gerald,” said Mr. Pemberton, the Headmaster.

Gerald sat down on a chair at the side of the Headmaster’s desk. He looked up and saw what Mr. Pemberton had in his hand. It was Gerald’s letter to his father.

“Mr. Chaplin showed me your letter home, Gerald,” said the Headmaster. “This is a very sad letter and it will make your father sad too.” The Headmaster looked down at the letter. “We only have bread and butter for tea,” he read. “Now, Gerald, your father does not want to hear about such little things. There are more important things you can tell him about your new school: your lessons, the new friends you have made here.” The Headmaster stopped and looked at the boy. Bracher was looking at the floor. He was afraid to speak.

“When you have written another letter,” said Mr. Pemberton, “give it again to Mr. Chaplin.” He tore up Gerald’s letter and gave him the envelope. “Go back to your reading now,” he said and for the first time smiled at the boy.

Part II

One Saturday evening Gerald Bracher went into a shop in the town with another boy whose name was Howarth. Howarth wanted to buy some exercise-books. At the back of the shop there were some shelves of books. It was a kind of small library. People could pay a few pence to the shopman, take a book home and read it.

“Look, how many interesting books they have got,” said Gerald. “Why don’t you take one of these books?” said Howarth.

“They won’t let me,” said Gerald.

“I’ll ask them,” said Howarth. He came back in a minute and said: “You can take a book for five days, if you pay ten pence.”

In a few minutes Gerald found a book which he liked, paid ten pence and they went back to school.

On Sunday evening he finished the book, and decided to go into the town on Monday after school to change it. He forgot that pupils of his school could go into town only on Wednesdays and Saturdays. He left the school playground with some of the day boys. When he was in the street, he remembered the rule but decided not to turn back. All went very well. He changed his book and went back.

“Nobody has seen me,” he thought, as he walked back into the playground.

A little later, the teacher on duty told him that the Headmaster wanted to see him.

“Come in, boy,” said Mr. Pemberton and Gerald understood that the Headmaster knew everything.

“Have you anything to tell me, boy?” asked Mr. Pemberton.

“I don’t think so, sir.”

“Then it was not you who half an hour ago was in the town?”

For a minute Gerald did not answer, then he said:

“Yes, sir, it was.”

“Why did you go there?”

“I only went to change a book, sir.”

“To change a book! Have you read all the books in your classroom and in the school library?”

Gerald said nothing.

“Don’t you know that we do not let boys go into town on all days and at all hours?” said the Headmaster.

“I am sorry, sir,” said Gerald.

“Come up here,” said the Headmaster, and Gerald saw that he was in the corner of the office where a cane stood near the wall.

The Headmaster beat the boy with the cane.

At first Gerald did not feel any pain.

“You may go now, boy,” said Mr. Pemberton and Gerald went out. Now he felt the pain and wanted to cry.